Vaccines for monkeypox now available to certain US residents who were exposed

White House officials confirmed that health care workers who have been exposed to monkeypox are now being offered a vaccine.

There have been reports of monkeypox in multiple states, including Massachusetts and New York. According to the World Health Organization, 237 suspected and confirmed cases have been reported in 19 countries outside of Africa, where the virus is endemic. The outbreak is not known to be associated with any deaths.

“I’m happy to report, even with the first case in Boston at Massachusetts General Hospital, our colleagues across the government have been able to get vaccines to that hospital. And just yesterday they’ve already started offering the vaccines to health care workers who have been exposed,” Dr. Raj Panjabi, who leads the White House’s monkeypox response, told CNN this week.

Identifying and isolating those infected and making sure they are treated should be the first step, Panjabi explained. The second step is to make certain those who have been exposed to infected persons are vaccinated. We have a better chance of ending this outbreak if we repeat that strategy again and again-and that is how we are approaching it at the White House and across the government."

27 May 2022